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Downing Street rejects claim that Brexit talks did not start well

Downing Street has rejected a claim by the former head of the diplomatic service that Brexit talks have not "begun particularly promisingly".

Sir Simon Fraser, who was the chief mandarin at the Foreign Office until 2015, said Cabinet divisions made it hard for the government to establish a clear position.

In response, the Prime Minister's official spokesman said: "We would disagree strongly (with Sir Simon's comments). The last two months, we have had a constructive start to the negotiations. We have covered a significant amount of important ground.

"As the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union said at the end of the last negotiating round, important progress has been made in understanding one another's positions on key issues."

David Davis was photographed without any papers at Brexit talks last month.

The intervention came after Sir Simon, who now advises businesses on Brexit and foreign policy told the BBC: "The negotiations have only just begun, I don't think they have begun particularly promisingly, frankly, on the British side.

"We haven't put forward a lot because, as we know, there are differences within the Cabinet about the sort of Brexit that we are heading for and until those differences are further resolved I think it's very difficult for us to have a clear position."

The government is reportedly willing to pay a £36 billion divorce bill. Credit: PA

Downing Street also played down weekend reports that the government was ready to pay a £36 billion "divorce bill" to the EU in order to secure a free trade deal with the bloc after Brexit, following an angry response from some Tory MPs.

The Prime Minister's spokesman said that while the UK had always accepted there would have to be a "fair settlement" in respect of the UK's outstanding liabilities, they did not recognise the reported figure.

"The Prime Minister made clear in the letter triggering Article 50 that the UK and the EU need to discuss a fair settlement of both our rights and our obligations as an EU member state, but in terms of this figure I don't recognise it," the spokesman said.

Last month Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson suggested European leaders can "go whistle" if they expect Britain to pay a divorce bill following withdrawal from the EU.